Bucket provided with an opening bottom



DeC. 28, 1954 J. MULON BUCKET PROVIDED WITH AN OPENING BOTTOM Filed Dec. 23, 1949 INVENTOR JEAN MULON i; ATTORNEY United States Patent BUCKET PROVIDED WITH AN OPENING BOTTOM Jean Mulon, Paris, France Application December 23, 1949, Serial No. 134,631

Claims priority, application France January 6, 1949 2 Claims. (Cl. 294-69) My invention has for its object a bucket of the opening bottom type, the fluid tightness of which is improved and the mechanism of which is protected against fouling while its contents are being exhausted during the emptying of the bucket, whereby the opening and closing of the bottom may be operated reliably without any too frequent cleaning. These conditions are satisfied according to my invention by providing smooth hinged bottoms on such skips or buckets, said bottom extending beyond the side wall of said skip or bucket so as to engage a ringshaped fluidtight arrangement surrounding the lower end of the skip or bucket body.

I have illustrated by way of example in accompanying drawings two embodiments of my invention disclosed merely by Way of exemplification, said embodiments relat ing more particularly to the transportation of concrete masses. In said drawings:

Fig. 1 is a cross-section of the bucket shown with the bottom in its closed position.

Fig. 2 is a cross-section thereof with the bottom in its open position.

Fig. 3 illustrates a modification.

Fig. 4 is a view on an enlarged scale of a detail of last mentioned embodiment.

Turning to Figs. 1 and 2, the body of the bucket a that may assume any desired shape is illustrated under the form of a frustocone with circular bases. Said body is provided with a handle b.

The opening bottom cover 0 is constituted by a smooth metal sheet hinged at a point d outside the bucket and it is equilibrated by a counterweight e.

A pivoting hook f serves for holding the bottom in its closed position. The fiuidtight arrangement is constituted by a yielding strip h secured inside the inverted channel g surrounding outwardly the lower end of the bucket body, said strip engaging the bottom 6 in the closed position of the latter.

Each time the bucket opens through a release of the hook f, the agglomerated material that may have entered the fiuidtight channel g at the moment of the filling of the bucket drops through gravity out of said channel.

In the modification of Figs. 3 and 4, the body a of the bucket assumes the shape of an inverted frustocone or pyramid frustum, the larger base of which is thus at the lower end of the bucket, whereby the emptying of the bucket, in the case of more or less viscous or plastic agglomerated material, such as concrete admixed with only a small amount of water, may be performed through a taper effect in the manner of the emptying of a gardeners pot. Furthermore, Fig. 4 shows a modified arrangement of the inverted channel g secured to the lower end and on the outside of the bucket body a.

c designates the bottom of the bucket in its closed posi tion with the rubber or the like yielding strip h urged ice as illustrated against the outer vertical wall p of the channel g.

The cross section of the rubber strip may be rectangular and said strip is secured to the channel by means of bolts such as in engaging beyond the rubber strip a slotted metal strip it through the application of which the rubber strip h is fiuidtightly urged against the wall p of the inverted channel g. The lower edge of the yielding strip extends slightly below the lower end of the vertical wall p whereby the bottom 0 of the bucket when it is closed exerts a pressure on said lower edge of the rubber strip and provides liquidtightness.

It should be noticed that, in the structure disclosed, said strip of rubber acts only as a fiuidtight closure for liquids while the closing against the passage of stones, gravel or the like is provided by the lower end of the side wall of the bucket a that substantially engages the bottom 0 whereby the rubber strip is protected against damage.

Particularly interesting results have been obtained by forming the strip 11 with sponge rubber.

What I claim is:

l. A receptacle for the transportation of cement comprising a receptacle having a body provided with a fiat bottom without any projecting rim, said bottom being capable of being opened and hinge means for said bottom whereby said bottom may be swung open and the cement allowed to be dumped from said receptacle and means for sealing said bottom to said receptacle body when said bottom is closed, said last mentioned means comprising a double sealing device wherein the first is constituted by the bottom edge of the lateral wall of said receptacle body and contacts said bottom when the latter is in closed position and wherein the second is constituted by a band of flexible material, and means secured to said receptacle for supporting said band outside of the lateral wall of the receptacle to form a water tight seal with said bottom, said sealing devices being separated from each other by a space sufficient to prevent cement lodged in said space from being retained therein when said bottom is opened.

2. A receptacle for the transportation of cement comprising a receptacle having a body provided with a flat bottom without any projecting rim, said bottom being capable of being opened and hinge means for said bottom whereby said bottom may be swung open and the cement allowed to be dumped from said receptacle and means for sealing said bottom to said receptacle body when said bottom is closed, said last mentioned means comprising a double sealing device wherein the first is constituted by the bottom edge of the lateral wall of said receptacle body and contacts said bottom when the latter is in closed position and wherein the second is constituted by a band of flexible material, and means secured to said receptacle for supporting said band outside of the lateral wall of the receptacle to form a water tight seal with said bottom, said devices being separated from one another by a distance of the order of 2 inches.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 495,162 Palm Apr. 11, 1893 984,921 Donnell Feb. 21, 1911 2,033,295 Parkin Mar. 10, 1936 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 452,226 France Dec. 20, 1912 122,772 Switzerland Oct. 1, 1927 

